Hot pepper is tasty, healthy, indispensable as a seasoning for a number of dishes. Do you love thrills? Then you just need to plant such a bush, especially since it can grow on the windowsill like an ordinary flower, pleasing the eye with multi-colored peppercorns against the background of green foliage.
Varieties of bitter pepper for the windowsill
It is with the variety that you should decide before you start growing. Since hot chili peppers are less popular than, say, cucumbers or tomatoes, there are not very many varieties and it's hard to get confused. Let's look at the main decorative bush options.
Queen of Spades
It's miniature evergreen shrub, the fruits of which are distinguished by excellent taste properties. They can be added not only to various sauces and second courses, but also to marinades, as well as to salt. In the process of ripening, peppers have a different color - from green and purple to yellow and red. So your bush will be constantly strewn with colorful pods. The variety is suitable for growing on the windowsill throughout the year. The plant reaches a height of only 20-30 cm.
Fireworks
Early maturing variety with fruits resembling tiny barrels, slightly tapering towards the top. The color of peppers is varied, often multi-colored. The taste of the pods is very sharp, spicy. The variety does not need good lighting, it can grow well even in the shade. But it definitely requires timely watering and regular top dressing.
Indian summer
An interesting plant whose fruits look more like tiny tomatoes than traditional pods. It gives a lot of leaves, but a lot of fruits on it. The color of the fruit is very diverse, from white and yellow to rich red and purple. This unpretentious variety that doesn't need a lot of light. Therefore, he feels great in winter on the windowsill. Peppercorns are very fragrant, moderately spicy, suitable for the preparation of medicinal alcohol tinctures, as well as use as a seasoning for dishes.
Aladdin
It ripens very early (only within three months after sowing). The height of the plant does not exceed half a meter, which makes it possible to grow it on a windowsill or on a loggia. The fruits are small, have a spicy aroma and a burning taste. It is used for marinating and preserving purposes, as well as in numerous spicy dishes.
Small miracle
Begins to bear fruit early, gives fruit for a long time and plentifully. Small, thick-walled pods change color as they mature, giving the bush valuable decorative properties. Can be sown directly from seeds indoor pots, or you can transplant the finished plant on the windowsill in the fall.
We have named the most popular varieties of hot peppers suitable for growing on the windowsill. In fact, there are many more.
Hot pepper on the windowsill: growing
You will need: a container for sowing and growing plants (box, pot), hot pepper seeds for the windowsill (or seedlings from the garden), soil.
A mixture of coarse sand, peat and humus is best suited as a soil. You can also mix turf with sand in a ratio of about 1 to 1. There is also a ready-made mixture for sale - choose the one that is suitable for planting eggplant, peppers, tomatoes.
Seeds of hot pepper are germinated before planting. To do this, wrap them in gauze and put in a saucer with water. The saucer is placed in a warm place near the battery (only it is necessary to ensure that the gauze remains wet all the time, otherwise the semi-sprouted seeds will die).
As soon as you see the first sprouting shoots, you can start sowing seeds. Pour the soil into the container, put drainage on the bottom of the container (at least 3-5 cm layer). This should be some kind of base through which water and air pass freely (expanded clay, small pebbles, broken brick). Water the soil the day before sowing.
We make shallow grooves in the soil and plant the seeds. From above we sprinkle the grooves with earth. As a result, your seeds should be no more than 1 cm deep in the ground. So that the soil does not dry out, the box or pot is covered with a piece of glass, transparent plastic or ordinary film and wait for germination.
Unlike ordinary greens, which are grown on the windowsill in winter, it will not work to grow hot peppers in a box. Despite its small size, this plant needs quite a lot of space, so best option- transplant seedlings into pots. That is, you can sow them in a box, but after waiting for 3-4 leaves, make a pick - transplant into a separate container, where the plant will continue to live. The volume of one pot should be at least one liter, preferably 1.5 - 2 liters.
Pepper loves the sun, but it does not tolerate overdried soil. Therefore, it is better to put the pots on the south side, but constantly monitor the degree of moisture in the earth. For a bountiful harvest, it is also necessary to produce regular top dressing and loosening.
Hot ornamental peppers can be perennial (read the information on the package with seeds). In this case, once a year, in spring or autumn, it is recommended to transplant it into a new soil.
In the spring, your window seedlings can be planted in the garden, and in the fall they can be transplanted back into pots.
You should not open the window if there is a pot of hot pepper on the windowsill - this plant does not like drafts.
Video how to grow chili peppers at home
With the onset of autumn, it is increasingly possible to enjoy bright days on the street. In the mornings, the earth is covered with thick fog, the sky is covered with clouds. And on gray trees there is almost no foliage. With the onset of winter, all this is covered with a layer of snow. However, you should not be upset. After all, we can continue to enjoy spring notes, and lush flowering plants can be provided on the windowsill.
It is noteworthy that here you do not have to lay out a lot of money, as it may seem to many at first glance. Today we will talk about How grow on the balcony little wonder of nature hot peppers. Interestingly, not always red pepper will appear. A green or yellow fruit may also grow. We can safely say that the hot pepper, which is grown on the windowsill, refers to decorative species. The shape of the pepper resembles a flattened ball, cylinder or small pyramid. The maximum height of a pepper in a flower garden is no more than half a meter. At the same time, about 50 fruits can ripen on such a bush. Note that decorative hot pepper is a plant that gives fruits for many years, namely five or six. It is worth noting the excellent bactericidal properties that hot peppers have. As a result, you protect your premises from harmful bacteria that may be in the air.
Aphids, caterpillars, whiteflies and other pests of houseplants do not like hot peppers. So, you can make a solution in water with pepper in a ratio of 1:10. The infusion should be kept for a day. If you spray this mixture on plants, they will be protected from pests. Immediately there is no need to buy specialized processing tools in the store.
"Christmas Pepper"
You can grow decorative peppers in winter in traditional ways. In this case, the plant begins to bear the first fruits by Christmas. That is why in some Western countries the plant is called "Christmas Pepper". It is noteworthy that the pepper is not just pleasing to the eye, standing on the windowsill. The fruits can be used in cooking, folk medicine as well as interior decoration. Using one pepper, you can change the taste of canned cucumbers or tomatoes. Hot peppers that we can grow on the windowsill, love the light very much. Therefore, pepper should be planted in the last days of February. You can even do this work in March. In the daytime, the temperature should average 23 degrees indoors, at night - up to 19 degrees. As soon as it becomes known temperature regime, it immediately becomes clear why the plant is great to grow at home.
Varieties of hot peppers on the windowsill
First you need to choose what kind of hot pepper you want to grow on the windowsill. "Spark", "Indian Summer", "Pupsik", "Flint" and many others are all excellent varieties that take root in pots on the windowsill. It is noteworthy that all these varieties were bred by domestic breeders. According to their characteristics, the obtained varieties are not inferior to imported species.
Preparing the soil for planting
In order to prepare the soil for planting pepper, it is not necessary to contact specialists. You can make the base yourself. It is necessary to use a top non-acidic layer of peat, humus, as well as river sand. You can use turfy soil mixed with river sand. Of course, the easiest way to prepare the land is to go and buy ready-made mix in the store. Suitable soil for growing tomatoes or eggplant.
Seedling
The seeds are germinated first. The material is placed in a damp gauze or napkin at room temperature (about 25 degrees). As soon as the first sprouts hatch from the seeds, you need to plant them in the ground. Planting depth - no more than one centimeter. Need to prepare in advance peat pots. The day before the pepper is planted, the soil must be watered abundantly. When the seeds are planted, you need to cover the container with glass or film. Next - put the seedlings in a warm place, wait until the first sunrise appears.
Transplanting Seedlings and Caring for Peppers
After the first green shoots appear above the ground, you need to wait until 4 leaves grow on them. Seedlings are placed in decorative clay pots. Their volume is 1-1.5 liters. Be sure to select pots in which there are holes for draining at the bottom. excess moisture. Drainage is required. It is laid out at the bottom of the pot. It is best to place seedlings on the south side, where there will be a lot of sun. If there is not enough light or it is constantly cloudy outside, you need to take care of artificial lighting.
In order for hot peppers to grow well, they need high-quality and constant watering. Need to water the plant room temperature. As the plant dries out, water is poured into the pan. Twice a year (spring and summer) hot peppers need to be fed. You can use complex mineral fertilizers, which are usually fertilized with indoor flowers. Feeding is applied after watering the plant. Fertilizers are applied directly to the soil.
Helpful Tips:
When peppers bloom, gently shake the pots. In this case, the plant will be better pollinated. In winter, in order for the plant not to overheat, not to dry out, you need to put a cloth on the battery, which is located under the windowsill. A plant that is over a year old needs to be transplanted into a large pot. Drafts are useless. Therefore, as soon as spring comes and you start to open windows, it is best to move the plant to the side.
It is noteworthy that using the same rules, you can grow on the windowsill and Bell pepper. Care, as well as the cultivation of sweet peppers are no different from the cultivation of hot peppers. However, it is forbidden to grow sweet and bitter peppers at the same time on the same windowsill. Otherwise, both plants will lose their taste qualities.
Video: How to grow hot peppers at home in winter:
Hot pepper on the windowsill is not only a necessary spice that is always at hand, but also an excellent decorative ornament at home, easy to grow. A pot of bright beautiful plant will serve exquisite decor for any home, and the piquant taste of such a hot spice will make this pepper indispensable in the kitchen of every hostess.
It is possible to grow at home and sweet bell pepper and burning sharp, varieties Drakosha or otherwise. How to plant seeds for seedlings and the conditions for planting in an apartment will be described further.
For growing on the windowsill, breeders specially bred several varietal varieties of hot peppers. Such indoor pepper is also divided into a fruit variety and decorative (without fruits).
The fruit variety of indoor hot pepper is a perennial that reaches a height no more than 40 cm. The plant has bright green leaves and multi-colored fruits of a rich color: scarlet, sunny or orange.
cultivation room pepper is not difficult and does not require special knowledge and wisdom. Very unpretentious and undemanding in care.
Flowering begins in June. During this period, delicate white flowers with a slightly yellowish tint appear on the stems.
How to grow at home on the windowsill
In order to get a plant with beautiful fruits on the windowsill, it is necessary to sow seeds for seedlings. Do it late February - early March.
To speed up the process of seed germination, they can be pre-heat-treated. To do this, the seeds are poured warm water(not higher than 40 degrees) and clog in a thermos for 3 hours.
Soil and pot preparation
The soil for seeds must be nutritious. You can prepare it yourself. To do this, mix 5 parts of humus, 2 parts of soddy land and peat, and 1 part of sand. At the bottom of the container, be sure must have drainage. Small expanded clay or pebbles are suitable for this.
The soil must be further disinfected: treated with boiling water, or a solution of potassium permanganate and loosened well. Seeds are sown to a depth of 1 cm.
Growing seedlings from seeds
The containers are covered with glass or film and left in a warm place where the temperature should not be below 20-25 degrees.
As a container, you can use an ordinary pot or box, it all depends on how many seeds are sown.
The first shoots are already appearing after 7 - 10 days. The room should have enough sunlight.
When the first shoots appear, the plants dive into separate pots. When several true leaves appear on the seedlings, they dive again, while choosing the strongest and strongest shoots.
The plant needs a sufficient amount of moisture, heat and light, at any stage of cultivation.
During the growth of seedlings, it is necessary to ensure that the seedlings do not stretch too much. To do this, they need to provide a certain ambient temperature.
When the first leaves appear, then within 7 days it is necessary to reduce the temperature to 20 degrees. And when three real leaves appear, be sure to reproduce the pick in a spacious pot. On permanent place seedlings are planted after 2 months after planting seeds.
Caring for indoor hot peppers
To grow hot peppers on the windowsill, you need to provide it with light and heat.
Fertilizer
Love this pepper very much. different kind top dressing. The most optimal fertilizer is 2 tablespoons of ash mixed with 3 liters of water. The mixture should be well infused. It is necessary to fertilize every two weeks.
You can use nitrogen fertilizers, but much less frequently. With such fertilizers, it is important not to overdo it, otherwise you can be left without a crop.
Watering
The soil must be regularly loosened and watered. two times a week warm settled or purified water. It is necessary to ensure that the soil in the pot does not dry out, but is not constantly wet. Both will contribute to various diseases of the plant.
IN winter time you can not use fertilizers and water the plant much less often. If the air in the room is dry, you can moisten the leaves a little by spraying them with water from a spray bottle.
In the warm season, the pots are taken out to the balcony, or to the street.
Fruiting
Temperature regime
Until about February, the plant can be kept indoors at a cooler temperature, but not lower than 18 degrees.
But before the start of the growing season (usually it starts in February), the pot needs to be moved to a more warm room and cut it. To do this, cut the stems so that they are no higher than 5 cm.
If you correctly follow all the recommendations for growing and caring for the plant: starting from the harvesting of seeds itself and ending with timely pruning, then such a pepper will retain its decorative effect and will actively bear fruit. up to 5 years.
Diseases and pests
This variety indoor plants may be subject to the following diseases: blackening of the legs or spotting of the leaves. This happens when watering is too abundant, in which stagnation of water forms in the pot.
The main pests of such pepper include aphids, spider mite And powdery mildew . An aphid or a tick can appear with the help of wind through an open window.
To combat the tick, you can use the plant itself. To do this, it is necessary to grind the pepper seeds together with the internal veins and fill them with water for a day. Then you need to add a little grated laundry soap and spray the plant. To completely get rid of pests, it is enough to carry out three spraying procedures.
To prevent the appearance of a tick, you need to provide the plant with sufficient moisture or place a container of water near the pepper pot.
With proper cultivation and care, the plant will delight the eye with excellent decorativeness for as long as 5 years, and its fruits will become a piquant spice in the kitchen.
Fallen leaves, rain, chilly wind, mud underfoot - all this does not bring us much joy, like a lot of snowdrifts and cold in the long winter months. But it is always easy to bring a riot of colors into your life by planting hot peppers on the windowsill.
Its pods can be almost every color of the rainbow on the same tree: sunny yellow, scarlet, snow white, purple. There are no flowers to be found here.
How to implement proper cultivation hot pepper at home and create excellent conditions for it to grow? Let's find out.
Hot pepper in cooking, medicine and cosmetology
The height of the plant is not more than half a meter, but one tree can have up to fifty pods. It is a perennial that grows freely in a pot for up to five years. In addition, hot pepper perfectly purifies the air, it is not afraid of numerous pests that are so dangerous for many plants.
If you plant pepper seeds at a special allotted time, then it will begin to bear fruit during the Christmas holidays. It is from there that his second name, given to him by the Europeans - Christmas.
Pepper is an excellent medicine, and tinctures and compresses prepared on its basis good remedy with diseases of the joints, colds, myositis and other diseases.
This plant is also used in cooking, for example, to add spice to pickles or as a seasoning for meat or fish.
Pepper is no less useful for self-care, because on its basis you can make wraps against cellulite, which is disgusting to us.
Most the best varieties for landing in an apartment or on a loggia - Sweeties, Firework, Queen of Spades and other types.
These are the fruits of domestic selection, they are no worse in terms of characteristics than their foreign counterparts. On the contrary, adapted to our conditions and soils, such plants grow much better and in open field and on our windowsill or loggia.
Conditions for growing hot peppers on the windowsill
Light for house pepper
Growing hot peppers on the windowsill can only be with abundant lighting. At the same time, it is best to grow varieties with small leaves, the process of photosynthesis takes place in them better.
It is recommended to plant pepper on the southwestern or eastern window so that the seedlings receive an abundance sun rays. If in winter the plants do not have enough light, then it is imperative to illuminate them with fitolamps or combine fluorescent light sources and incandescent lamps.
Pepper in winter should be illuminated up to 16–18 hours a day, and the nearest light source should be raised 25–30 cm from the crown.
Pepper leaves that have received a sufficient amount of light are always a dark green emerald color. And if the plant does not have enough sunlight, then the leaves fade, and the plant even sheds foliage.
Comfortable temperature conditions for hot pepper
The optimum temperature for a plant in summer is a range of 22 to 25 degrees Celsius, and in winter it is a threshold of 16 to 18 degrees.
Do not place containers close to the battery so that they do not overheat.
If you can't find a pot more appropriate place then the radiators should be covered.
He loves pepper and an abundance of moist air, so if the room has dry air, then the foliage must be sprayed.
Soil for planting
The best soil for peppers is a homemade mixture. The components of such a mixture are peat, sand and humus. If desired, peat is excluded, and only sand and turf are used.
As an option, you can buy soil suitable for peppers at any specialized store, purchasing soil designed for tomatoes, eggplants and peppers.
How to grow seedlings of pepper?
The best time to plant a seed is the second half of February. The capacity for seedlings can be any, but it is most convenient to plant seeds in a box or a small flower pot.
We prepare the seeds, stimulating their germination. To do this, put the seeds for seedlings in a thermos with warm water 40 degrees for 3 hours. Or you can just put them on a damp cloth for a day.
The soil is disinfected with boiling water, and a drainage layer is laid out on the bottom of the pepper container. It can be expanded clay, pebbles, shards from ceramic dishes or charcoal. From above we pour the earth, spill it with boiling water, make shallow holes in it with a depth of 10-15 mm and sow the seeds.
After a week, the first shoots appear, a novice plant lover should pay attention to the fact that the plant does not stretch.
Dive seedlings after the appearance of 3-4 leaves. As a rule, the most powerful sprout is selected from the seedlings, which is transplanted to a permanent place.
Plant formation and care
For transplanting pepper, you should select low wide pots, preferably ceramic. In such a container, the pepper will not overheat or freeze, and its root system will grow at the optimum temperature.
The first watering should be done after transplanting with warm water with the addition of potassium permanganate to disinfect the soil.
In order for the root system to be strong, you should pinch off the root by a third when planting seedlings in separate containers.
It is worth remembering that during flowering the plant must be shaken for pollination, it cannot pollinate itself on its own.
And it should be transplanted once a year, in spring, so that the root system and the pepper itself are not cramped.
You should be careful in the summer, when all the windows are wide open, because the plant is afraid of drafts and wind.
The ideal option would be to move the plant pot to a quiet place where it will not blow.
Hot pepper fertilizer
Fertilize the plant every 14 days after sowing, using for this complex top dressing. When planting in an individual pot, the soil is mixed with vermiculite in a ratio of 2 or 3 to 1.
Well suited for plants and watering with a solution of water with ash. Such top dressing is prepared as follows: we take 3 liters of water and mix with 4 teaspoons of ash.
Do not rush to feed green pets with nitrogen fertilizers. Otherwise, they will go into the "green mass", but will not produce a crop.
When the plants bloom, it will be useful to feed them with a solution succinic acid and potash fertilizers, and as soon as small pods begin to tie, the plant needs a fertilizer with a phosphorus content.
Watering is carried out with warm water as the soil dries out, on average 2 times a week. Do not let the plant dry out, it may die or shed its foliage.
Pepper begins to bear fruit in late May or early June, fruiting continues throughout autumn. Peppers are prepared for winter in this way: the temperature in the room is lowered to 18 degrees, while not reducing the amount of light. In the winter months, plants can not be fed, watering is also reduced, but without drying out. If the air in the room is very dry, spray from time to time.
In early February, the container from the plant is again brought into a warm place and the stem is cut almost to the base, leaving only 5 cm. proper care behind the plant, it will please you for a long time and give many pods. The life cycle of a plant is on average 5 years, during all this time this beautiful plant will delight you.
Today we will discuss the following topic - hot pepper: when to plant and how to care for?
Variety selection for home and greenhouse
This - perennial with a compact bush, decorative foliage and bright fruits. Peppers can be or greenhouse. Some varieties are suitable for open ground.
Breeders have bred many varieties that differ in taste nuances and fruit size, yield,. At home, varieties and hybrids of Dutch, Polish or Russian selection are more often grown.
Varieties of hot peppers for growing at home:
Small miracle- grade Dutch selection suitable for home growing. Fruits abundantly, fruits are small, orange, red or yellow. The taste is tangy yet delicate, perfect for sauces.
red fat man- a variety of Russian selection. A fairly tall bush is abundantly covered with large cone-shaped fruits suitable for canning. It can be grown both in the greenhouse and in the open field.
Astrakhan- Russian variety, different high yield. Compact bushes produce many small elongated bright red fruits with an unusually sharp taste. Used to make tinctures and sauces.
Ukrainian spicy- a small bush that grows well in a greenhouse or pot. The fruits are very long and thin, with a spicy burning taste.
flame- medium fruiting variety. The fruits are bright red, elongated, very juicy. Widely used in cooking. Greenhouse cultivation preferred.
jalapeno- popular in Latin American cooking, hot peppers have red or green small fruits. The taste is moderately spicy, recognizable. The fruits are well stored, the variety is quite productive.
After choosing a variety, we will describe how to grow hot peppers from seeds at home?
seedling preparation
Transplantation is carried out when the soil warms up enough, usually this happens in late spring. In a continuous cycle greenhouse heated all year round, the plant is planted at any convenient time.
How to distinguish seedlings of bitter pepper from sweet? Some gardeners prefer not to grow seedlings on their own, but to buy them in the market or in nurseries. In order not to confuse seedlings of hot peppers with sweet seedlings, you need to carefully consider the plants. The bitter stems are noticeably thinner, and the leaves are narrower.
The older the seedlings, the more noticeable the difference becomes. You can lightly bite the leaf of the plant. The greens of hot peppers have a brighter, slightly burning taste.
Experienced breeders do not recommend placing hot and sweet peppers next to each other.. Over-pollination is possible and both species will lose their taste. When planting plants in a greenhouse, place them as far apart as possible, but rather separate them with partitions.
Growing seedlings of bitter pepper at home
Let's describe in detail how to grow seedlings of bitter pepper at home?
The grown seedlings of indoor hot peppers are moved to spacious ceramic or plastic pots. The ideal height is 40-50 cm. Drainage is laid at the bottom of the containers, the plants are moved to a new location in a way.
Important do not disturb the tender roots, this can delay the further development of the bush and reduce the future yield.
hot pepper preferred good lighting, warm and moderate. The pot must be placed on the loggia, glazed balcony or windowsill.
At least 12 hours of daylight is desirable, so in winter and autumn you will have to organize.
In partial shade, the stems are stretched, the ovaries are poorly formed and may fall off. For better insolation, you can regularly remove excess side shoots.
Water the plant with soft water at room temperature 2 times a week. It is preferable to water through the pan, but before fertilizing it is necessary to moisten the earthen lump from above. Peppers benefit from fresh air, the rooms where the pots are placed should be ventilated frequently, and the soil in the pots should be loosened regularly.
Hot pepper loves nutritious soil. During active growth every 2 weeks, an aqueous solution is added to the pots. Superphosphate, potassium sulfate and ash are preferred, universal complexes (Kemira and others) also work well.
For successful fruiting, it is necessary to maintain a stable temperature. The ideal mode is 22 degrees during the day and not lower than 17 at night. Pepper does not tolerate even short-term frosts; the exhausting summer heat is also fatal for it. During the period of especially active sun, the bushes are recommended to be shaded.
Timely pinching will help increase productivity. 1-2 of the strongest shoots are left on the bush, the rest are removed. The formed bush looks neater, the plant does not waste energy on gaining green mass, focusing on the ovaries. For greater stability, a fragile stem can be tied to a support.
Regular spraying of the bush with an aqueous solution of succinic acid will help to increase the number of ovaries.
Peppers are self-pollinating crops, but many gardeners prefer to stimulate pollination by regularly shaking the pot or running a cotton swab over the florets.
In the dry and warm air of apartments, plants can be affected. For the prevention of plants and the air around them, you need to regularly spray with warm water. Having found cobwebs, the affected plants are treated with an aqueous solution of an insecticide. It is better to take the affected bush to a separate room. Processing is carried out until the pests are completely removed.
